In Her Image: a Pokémon RP

[JokerboyJordan]

Savannah once again could do nothing but stare in bemusement as her pokemon took a vicious chomp on it's opponent, only to be repaid with a Water Pulse which had obliterated Sutekh's health. Set, being at a type disadvantage looked worse for wear, not only that, but as the Trapinch rose to continue the fight Sav could sense that something was wrong.
As Set attempted to use Sand Attack, it only succeeded in hurting itself in it's confusion, trying a Signal Beam produced a similar result, this time knocking the confused pokemon completely unconscious, not even standing a chance.

...And that's a win for Darius' Psyduck! Uh... What an incredibly unlucky turn of events for Trapinch.

Indeed, Terry! Hit with a super-effective move and confused. And knocked out by it's confusion too! Wow.

"...Bad luck there Set, I'm so very sorry. Don't blame yourself, it was all me..."

Savannah proceeded to once again withdraw her pokemon back to it's pokeball, replacing it on her belt.

Just one more shot left... Well here goes nothing, it's better than forfeiting

She reached for a Dive Ball on her belt, before throwing it before her opponent. The ball opened and spurted forth a ray of light, which then formed into a figure on the floor.

Spoiler: Feebas

The Fish Pokemon flapped about on the ground, looking quite feeble indeed.

"Bass...!"

Sav then saw Darius beam at her across the field, before picking up his Psyduck, before announcing

"Thanks for having me Rustboro City! It's been fun, but my time in this tournament is at an end! I respectfully withdraw and ask that if any of you have Day-Care or Pokemon Breeding needs, please, come looking for Darius O'Kere, Kanto Region!"

He then bowed and then turned heel, walking out of the exit, pokemon underarm, puffing on that ludicrous pipe of his.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?! We're not finished here! Do you hear me Mr. Crackpipe?!"

What a self righteous ass! He had to go and be all "high and mighty" didn't he?! Making me the victor by default for Arceus' sake...

Savannah withdrew her Feebas, before storming off back to her tunnel, eager to get away from the crowd who looked on feeling sorry for her. She didn't need their sympathy, didn't need their pity. She could do things for herself, she had come this far by her own and she wasn't about to stop now. Inside the tunnel she began muttering to herself vociferously.

"Thinks he can humiliate me like this...In front of all these people... I don't accept forfeits... I EARN victories... I didn't travel across two regions just to quit after getting beat by some pipe-smoking, ginger bearded, good-for-nothing, laid back, holier than thou asshole! "

She kicked the wall, thankfully for her running shoes which spared her from the full force. Taking a few deep breath before calming down, Sav slowly made her way to nearest Pokemon Centre to heal her pokemon

 

[Pappytech]

"Daria... I can't... breathe!"

Matt managed to squeeze out a few desperate breaths as Daria seemingly attempted to snap his spine. The "hug" lasted for a short eternity; Matt could have sworn he saw the light at the tunnel's end when the loudspeaker suddenly boomed out.

"WHAAAAAT!?"

And then precious, precious oxygen as a distracted Daria released him. Matt didn't even care about the unusual resolution of Darius' and Savannah's match, he was just grateful to get some air in his lungs. Breathing heavily, the young trainer turned to Remy. "Remind me -huff huff- to never piss her off. Because -jus give me a minute- if that was her good side, I don't even want to think about her bad one."

 

[JdaS]

EH-EEEEEEEEEEH!?!?! HE FORFEITS?!??! DARIUS O'KERE FORFEITS THE MATCH, MAKING SAVANNAH IRIS OUR WINNER!!!!

The unabashed surprise in Terry's voice was priceless. Behind the announcers, station execs and all sorts of personnel were busy answering calls from disgruntled viewers and advertising companies, while at the arena, the viewers hurled insults and booed at the top of their lungs.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ALL ABOUT!?!"
"I DIDN'T COME HERE FOR THIS!!"
"THAT ANY WAY TO TREAT THAT POOR GIRL???"

Soon enough the tune started to change. This had been one of the more exciting matches thus far.

"COME BACK DUDE!!!"
"WE WANTED MORE!!"
"SCREW BREEDING! YOU SHOULD START UP A GYM!!!"
"HANG IN THERE PURPLE HAIRED GIRL!!"

I guess that's it folks! What a show and what a way to end it all.

Sure was Andy! I've heard of crazy publicity stunts, but this? This was quite a surprising turn of events to say the least!

You said it, Terry! With Savannah Iris as our winner, it's time to go on a small commercial break. When we come back, Lee Brook will take on Ike Sherman in a Group 16 battle so stay right here, on PBBN!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Darius made his way down the Red Tunnel with Daffy under his arm, a cold, sharp voice spoke up.

"Breeder? You? Please. Those ridiculous Pokémon look like they've been raised in a barn. And that pitiful stunt... Trying to make Breeder's Monthly?"

The voice belonged to a tall, gaunt and pale man. Dressed in black and sporting a lab coat. Slicked back blonde hair and a pair of glasses completed the look. There was no question. The man in front of Darius was none other than Jeremy Moore, a well known breeder from Fuchsia City in Kanto, hailed as the young prodigy who was making breeding into an exact science. Jeremy looked down at Darius, scoffed and continued.

"I was looking forward to crushing your sad ideas of what constitutes proper breeding, but now I guess I'll have to do with that girl from Hoenn instead. That is, after I deal with this "Ryan Oliver", anyway."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hmph. Just as undisciplined as its Trainer. That's what happens when proper training methods aren't employed. What a waste. Monferno, Hitmonchan, Hariyama, back to your PokéBalls!"

With 3 beams of red energy, Forte's Pokémon returned to their owner, who proceeded to put them back in his bag.

That's when the girl with a long black braid of hair approached the burly fighter.

"No worries, Forte. You'll beat that hussy and her weaksauce Pokémon and teach her not to hit on MY Remy!"

"Silence, girl. I fight her for my own purposes, not to fulfill your crazed teenage love fantasies."

"Hmph. You're no fun Forte..."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back at where the tenants were watching the action, Remy was baffled at Darius' decision.

"That guy is one weird character. Even if he wanted publicity he could've at least finished the match, right? Savannah can't be happy with this..."

"Remind me -huff huff- to never piss her off. Because -jus give me a minute- if that was her good side, I don't even want to think about her bad one."

Helping Matt back up, Remy laughed and said

"Hahaha. Don't worry, as long as you don't insult her or her Pokémon, I don't think you'll have any problems."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile in an alley somewhere in Goldenrod, a badly beat up Ike Sherman pleaded with his two aggressors.

"P-p-please... Not m-my Pokémon... N-not Kirlia! Why!? Why are you doing this!?!"

"GAHAHAH! Can it kid! We can do whatever we like to weak runts like you. These Pokémon are way too dangerous to leave for a weak ass kid like you to handle."

"Yeah! Now shuddit before we kick ya around sommore!"

Looking at his muggers laughing and walking away with his Pokémon, Ike passes out in the alley.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back at the arena. An official approaches Lee.

"Excuse me, Lee? Lee Brook? Your match is up next. If you'd be so kind as to follow me to your tunnel."

 

[Redryhno]

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?! We're not finished here! Do you hear me Mr. Crackpipe?!"

Darius turned around, Daffy still in his arms, clutching the bitten foot at the angry voice throwing challenges and insults his way. He just smiled and nodded at her before continuing on his walk.

"Psssssssyyyyyy" he moaned, even though there wasn't alot wrong with it beyond a bit of a scrape.

As he entered the tunnel, a figure approached from the other side, and Darius was more than a bit surprised when it turned out to be Jeremy. He'd met him in passing once or twice, never liked the guy that much, but his ability as a breeder was known Kanto-wide at the least.

"Trying to make Breeder's Monthly?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that. I don't exactly have the reputation you do, or the money to put in an ad, so I've gotta go through with some stunts. I'll see if this one pays off or not. You wanna keep talking, I'm on my way to the Center."

Darius kept walking down the tunnel, hearing the echos of the angry stadium fans. Not really that bothered with the jeers, he was more worried about the prick walking with him.

"I was looking forward to crushing your sad ideas of what constitutes proper breeding, but now I guess I'll have to do with that girl from Hoenn instead. That is, after I deal with this "Ryan Oliver", anyway."

"Sorry to disappoint ya, Jeremy, but hey, all's well that ends well, and I have to say that this ended up much better than I expected. As for that girl, she's pretty good at what she does, so don't go underestimating her too much, I only won that last fight with her Spriggan through luck more than anything else. Good talking with you, but I've got some PokeCentering to do along with getting my pokemon ready for more walking around."

"Pssssssyyyyyyyyyy."

"Oh quit it, you, you're not dying, you just can't walk right at the moment."

"Psy?"

"Yes, you. Now let's get going."

The pokemon breeder quickened his pace a bit, pushing past anyone that got in his way as politely and forcefully as he could. He reached the pokemon center and healed up his team, leaving for a few minutes to get some treats for each of them. Two lollipops for Knuckles and Daffy, a bowl of hot chocolate for Numel, whenever he got back up, and a fruit soda for Whismur, along with their helpings of pokechow.

 

[Shakomaru]

HE'S DONE IT! SANDSLASH IS THE WINNER!!
"Ouch! That Sandslash is something else! What do you think Kusari, could it beat Aeolus? I think we would just be able to squeeze a victory out of it, as long as it's frozen."
"Skor?"

"Sav is really tough too, any pokemon that can survive an earthquake attack is in a league of its own. Everyone in this tournament is so strong! No matter who I'm up against next, it's almost guaranteed to be a great battle!"

Watching the match eagerly tom was almost in an unbreakable trance. Well until,
"I'M GONNA GIVE YOU HELL TOMORROW, SO GET READY TO LOSE!"

Shaken, Tom looked around him and saw Matt yelling at a man with a machop. He smiled to himself as he realized just how amazing his fellow inn patrons were. Turning back to the battle Tom watched the battle between the psyduck and trapinch, which ended predictably. However what happened next caught Tom off guard.

"I respectfully withdraw and ask that if any of you have Day-Care or Pokemon Breeding needs, please, come looking for Darius O'Kere, Kanto Region!"

"Wow! Another amazing match! I tell ya Kusari, all of us have surprises up our sleeves. That spirit Matt and Rupert showed, this, and.. well some other larger and bluer secrets. But really That Darius is an amazing trainer."

"Skor?"

"Well yeah, I wasn't expecting that at all, and I was kinda hoping for a longer battle, but everyone has their reasons for doing things. What do you say though, should I go ask the guy for a battle?"

"Skor!"

"Alright! I'll ask him when he comes back up here. Well, as long as Daria doesn't start shouting immediately when she sees him..."

 

[Anayna]

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?! We're not finished here! Do you hear me Mr. Crackpipe?!"

Rupert looked on as Savannah yelled at Darius who was leaving the ring after forfeiting. This was not the outcome Rupert had expected. His niggling feelings of doubt about Darius had returned. Why had he forfeited? Was it an act of mercy? No, his little publicity stunt about his daycare services made that unlikely. A publicity stunt; was that all this battle had been to him? Rupert couldn't help but feel that this was a little disingenuous, and disrespectful towards Savannah and her team. Rupert abandoned his musings as he sat down.

Sigh. I guess I shouldn't assume. There are more ways than one to be a trainer.

He couldn't help but feel a little sorry for Savannah though. She had been really good out there and didn't deserve this. Rupert strongly suspected that she wasn't the type who wanted people's sympathy though.

You said it, Terry! With Savannah Iris as our winner, it's time to go on a small commercial break. When we come back, Lee Brook will take on Ike Sherman in a Group 16 battle so stay right here, on PBBN!

Commercial break huh? Rupert decided to leave the stands for now. They were awfully lively (not least thanks to his fellow Sleeping Sunkern patrons) and Rupert needed a break from people. He also really needed a sip of water. Should have taken that drink from Caleb...

Rupert made his way past the others, for a moment stopping and wondering if this was the moment to thank Tom. He decided against it though and found the stairs. There Rupert had to stop and make way for a bizarre quartet consisting of a Charmeleon, Hitmonlee, Staryu and the Graveler from before. They were munching on a few snacks. Rupert could only stare as he made his way past them.

Having made his way below Rupert realized that this had been the first time he had actually followed a pokemon battle with interest. His previous approach to pokemon training had led to him actively avoiding these things. Rupert still wasn't sure if he genuinely enjoyed watching pokemon fight, but he couldn't deny that it could be a spectacular sight. Lost in his own thoughts yet again Rupert realized that he was a bit lost. He had somehow managed to find a deserted hallway in the packed stadium. Rupert cursed his own absentmindedness as he started listening for voices, trying to find a way to the concession stands.

 

[nuba km]

Lee sat waiting, after about 10min he started playing catch with snover using a snover berry, this went on as match after match was missed by lee, snover and lee dropped the berry a couple of times during the last match as the quakes went off, First this girl talks all about being tough and not backing down yet she doesn't show up to a challenge, if she was so pissed off by what could maybe be taken as a insult she must have some confidence issues. That or a serious temper Lee thought.

"Excuse me, Lee? Lee Brook? Your match is up next. If you'd be so kind as to follow me to your tunnel."

'Alright' lee said returning snover to his pokeball, he then followed the tournament official.

 

[JdaS]

As Rupert made his way through the crowds, he bumped into someone, the force of the impact sending the boy flying to the floor. As he looked up at who he had bumped into, Rupert turned a very sickly shade of white. In front of him stood a tall, angry looking, bald man, dressed in a black suit and an unbuttoned white shirt that revealed the huge eastern style Garchomp tattoo etched on his upper body.

Before Rupert could plead for his life, the man walked past him.

"Watch where you're going, you damned whelp... You might bump into someone nasty."

Disappearing into the crowd, the man speaks into his black Pokétch.

"Everything is in place then? And the two chuckleheads who attacked the kid? Good. Cut it in 10 minutes. Hm? Tell that asshole that everything is under control. That uptight prick can keep playing in his little aquarium for all I care. Right. Eres out."
________________________________________________________________________________________________

And we're back! Sorry to keep you all waiting, folks. With all this drama and excitement over with, we're ready for our last batch of fights! So without further delay, please welcome in the Red Corner, from Lilycove City, Hoenn... LEE BROOK!!!

Lee walks into the arena as the crowd cheers in anticipation of the coming match.

10 minutes.

And in the Blue Corner! From Fallarbor Town, Hoenn... IKE SHERMAN!!

Nothing. The Blue tunnel produces no challengers.

8 minutes.

The crowd starts getting impatient. Muttering can be heard among the spectators.

6 minutes.

Uhh... Is Ike Sherman in the premises? If so please present yourself to the arena, please.

4 minutes.

In the arena's studio offices a phone rings.

"What!?! The hospital??"

2 minutes.

Ladies and gentlemen, we regret to inform you that due to circumstances out of our control, we are unable to present you this match...

The crowd instantly starts hurling insults and hatred towards the announcers.

"AGAIN!?!?! WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK I PAID 7800P FOR!?!?"
"WHAT WAS IT THIS TIME!?! MORE PUBLICITY?!?!"
"THIS TOURNAMENT IS A RIP-OFF!!"

0.

Please calm down, we just recieved word that Ike Sherman is...

BBBBBBZZZZZZZZZZZZKKKKHHHHHHHTTTTTTTHHHHHHHHHHH

A power outage. Lights, PA system, Magnet Train, Radio Tower, the Department Store. Everything except for the PokéCenters and places with independent generators goes dark.
______________________________________________________________________________________________

"Hn?"

"Iaaaaaaaaaahhhh!! Forte?! What happened?"

"Silence, girl. Come on, let's get out of here before everyone panics."

______________________________________________________________________________________________

Remy doesn't have much time to wonder about what is going on before the power goes out.

"What the--? The heck is going on in here? Some sort of blackout??"

 

[Redryhno]

As Darius was visiting with his pokemon in the Stadium's Center, he heard the overwhelming abrupt silence, followed by more than a fair share of screams and cries of outrage. Numel was conscious again and had drank his bowl dry within seconds of his waking up. The others were healed up quite nice and Daffy and Knuckles had degenerated into their normal antics, play sword fighting with their lollipop sticks, but they perked up when the silence and subsequent light thundering followed.

"Alright guys, get in your pokeballs, you're healed up, let's try and beat the scramble, shall we?"

"Psy?"

"Sllasssh"

[sub][sub]Whis....mur[/sub][/sub]

"Nuuuuuu?"

He Returned all of them to their Pokeballs except for his Psyduck, who he grabbed up and put under his arm again. Outside the PokeCenter, the darkness in the tunnel was almost absolute, with the glow from the glass doors behind him barely illuminating the opposing wall.

"Flash time, Daffy, we need to get out of here before the run for the doors starts."

"Psy?"

"Yes, you Daffy, now."

Daffy responded by closing his humongous eyes and concentrating before opening them again and a soft glow emanating from them, illuminating the quickest path to the exit at the end of the tunnel. He hurried that way, a few of his new "fans" shouting insults as he passed them in the darkness.

"Hey, YOU! Yeah you, you ginger-bearded asshole, I paid good money for those seats and you go and forfeit?"

"Yep, now if you'll excuse me, I'm leaving."

"Why the hell did you quit!"
"You could've won the tournament!"
"Don't run away while I'm speaking to you!"

He pushed past anyone that got in his way, until he ran into a small cluster of kids, who clamored for Daffy's handprint of all things. He looked back and saw that his "fans" were still clamoring for their own souvenirs from him and told the kids he was sorry, but he had to go.

He exited the stadium relatively quickly, and headed for the Sleeping Sunkern after returning Daffy to his pokeball and attempting to hide his face from the crowd.

 

[CJ1145]

Daria's eyes shot open as the light dimmed all around them. In a few brief moments, everything went dark, and visibility went from daylight to utter darkness in the span of a few seconds. All around, those int he Trainer's Box could hear people muttering, their voices raising. An all-out riot was ready to break out. The trainer snapped her shades off of her face, pocketing them as she spun around to face her team. Two Pokeballs snapped off of her belt, and opened up to let in Slagger and Jet. The two disappeared quickly, leaving Spiegel and Gemini as her only active partners. She knelt down, pulling them in close as she looked them dead in the eye.

"Okay, both of you. We're doing crowd control, got it? I'm sorry, but, Gemini? You're taking one for the team. Spiegel?"

The fire lizard nodded wordlessly, and began to claw and slash at the Staryu. Blow after blow was taken, until it looked nearly ready to fall over. Its gem began to blink rapidly, creating an easy-to-spot light source. Daria gave it a thumbs up and a pat. "Great job, girl, now get over to the big exit, all right?"

"Hyaa!"

The tan star spun off of the Trainer's Box and out towards its destination. She turned Spiegel around and faced him towards the other exit on the opposite side of the stadium. "That's your target, Spiegel. You're the beacon to lead these people to light. Can you do it?"

"CHAR!"

The Charmeleon saluted and leaped off of the Box, stomping on heads and generally being rude as he made his way over to his door.

Daria walked to the front of the Trainer's Box, leaning out over it as she waited for both Pokemon to get into position. On one side, Charmeleon reached his door and immediately flared his tail up to its maximum height. A perfect torch. On the other, Staryu's blinking was almost as bright as a searchlight in these conditions. Daria took a deep breath, and at the top of her lungs shouted out into the crowd.

"ATTENTION, ALL PATRONS! DO NOT PANIC! EXITS HAVE BEEN MARKED FOR YOU. PLEASE MAKE FOR THE BLINKING STARYU, OR THE CHARMELEON BY THE EXIT GATES IN A CALM AND ORDERLY FASHION!"

Message delivered, Daria leaned back and wiped a bit of sweat off her brow, and turned to the others. She pointed at their own exit, leaning towards it a bit. "So, uh... we probably better get goin' while the getting's good, right?"

 

[Shakomaru]

"So, uh... we probably better get goin' while the getting's good, right?"

Tom was still reeling from the insanely loud shout that Daria had just let out.

"WHAT'D SHE SAY KUSARI? I COULDN'T HEAR THE SECOND PART!"

"SKOR!"

"OH! WE SHOULD PROBABLY GO THEN!"

With his ears still pounding Tom followed the others outside.

Recovering a bit and looking around he noticed something unusual.

"Hey where'd Rupert go? Did anyone see him?"

 

[Pappytech]

"What the--? The heck is going on in here? Some sort of blackout??"

"Yeah, looks like it." Matt may have had his problems, but a fear of the dark was one thing that didn't burden him. If anything the light's sudden absence only helped the lad; he knew that the crowds were still there, but not being able to see them did its part to alleviate his awkwardness.

Matt blindly pawed through the darkness, ensuring that nobody was going to bump into him. The scared and annoyed shouts of people in the surrounding seats faded into the background, as the young trainer thought about his next course of action. "Geeze, it's worse than Union Cave in here..."

It took a moment, but Matt eventually found the Pokeballs strapped to his waist; clutching the middle of the trio, he released the Pokemon in a flash of white light. "Quil?"

"Hey Spike, sorry to have to wake you up. Not really sure what happened, but we could use some light here. Think you can help us out?"

The Cyndaquil paused for a moment, stretching its back and letting out a small, somewhat adorable yawn, before nodding. "Cyndaquil!"

A small row of flames burst from the Pokemon's back, illuminating the area directly around Matt and his companions. "Heh, thanks buddy. Come on, let's get you up here." Picking up the fire-type, Matt placed Spike on top of his head, chuckling as the Cyndaquil squirmed in an attempt to get comfortable.

"Okay, both of you. We're doing crowd control, got it? I'm sorry, but, Gemini? You're taking one for the team. Spiegel?"

It looked like Daria had had a similar idea; after a few moments, her Staryu was flashing brightly in the darkness, providing a beacon of escape.

"So, uh... we probably better get goin' while the getting's good, right?"

"Aye, that we should."

 

[Evrant-Knight]

Caleb's eyes quickly became accustomed to the darkness, as all around him, a various assortment of trainers began talking; some where making plans to get out of the now almost pitch black arena, save for the light being made by Daria's Staryu and Charmeleon; others were scared as to what was going on. Raiden however was quietly confident, his eyes turning a slightly golden colour. He turned to the Bright Eyes Pokémon.

"Of course, when your eyes go that colour, a Luxray can see through anything. That should help us find away out. Good thinking." Caleb remarked, complimenting Raiden on his quick thinking.

"So, uh... we probably better get goin' while the getting's good, right?" Daria asked the group.

"Your right Daria. With your Pokémon acting as beacons for people to follow, and with Raiden here being able to see in the dark, we should be able to make it through here with little difficulty."

 

[nuba km]

'ahh what the hell?' Lee said as the power failed, first his opponent doesn't show up and now this. He looked around to see what other people were doing nad it could made out that the crowds were leaving the stadium guess I'll do the small. Lee released duskull form his pokeball and said 'will-o-wisp defensive, then light the way' duskull created a set of will-o-wisp flames that he then made float around him in horizontal and vertical circles. As lee followed duskull down the tunnel he kept a hand on duskull's ball encase he decided to go off and scare people, as this would most definitely not be a good time to do so.

 

[Anayna]

"Ouch!"

Rupert fell to the floor after he turned a corner and walked straight into someone. Someone who upon impact felt more like a brick wall and flinched about as much as one too. Before Rupert could apologize he stiffened in fear. Looking up through his dark tresses that had fallen in front of his eyes Rupert saw a tall, angry looking, bald man, dressed in a black suit and an unbuttoned white shirt that revealed the huge eastern style Garchomp tattoo etched on his upper body. He looked like a Yakuza!

"Watch where you're going, you damned whelp... You might bump into someone nasty."

In his fear Rupert didn't respond, even as the man literally stepped over the downed trainer and walked away. Rupert continued to lay quite still and only dared to resume breathing as the man's steps faded. The Yakuza now appeared to be on the phone and Rupert took the opportunity to scamper off on all four.

Oh dear lord, that was scary! I nearly died! He was totally going to do something horrible to me! He was talking about attacking someone else too just now! I need to get out of here...

And that's when the power died and Rupert nearly had a heart attack. What the heck was going on?! In the darkened hallway, still on all fours, Rupert was listening to his own beating heart. It sounded like it was on the verge of using a Self Destruct. Slowly, very slowly, he rose to his feet and called out.

"H-hullo?"

Rupert nearly had his second heart attack within one minute as he did get a response of sorts. For a second a red light lit up the hallway as one of his two pokeballs burst open and materialized a member of his team. Then all was dark again.

"C-Cubone? Is that you? What are you - AAAHH!"

It was indeed Cubone that had appeared. Rupert knew this not because Cubone had called out, but because his bone club had just smashed into his left shinbone. Cubone's trainer yelled in pain and grabbed his leg.

"What the heck, Cubone?! What was that for?"

"Cubone! Cu cu! Bone!"

"W-what? I deserved it? Why? What did I do..."

"Booooone... Cubone. Bone!"

"Remember what the Yakuza said? What are you talking a..."

Rupert suddenly remembered. Whilst walking away the Yakuza had said something about attacking someone and then immediately afterward about cutting "it" in 10 minutes.

"Wait... You think that this guy had something to do with cutting the power? And you want me to go after him?! Are you mad?!"

"Bone" came the stern reply.

Rupert mulled it over. The time frame fit. It was roughly ten minutes since his run in with the tattooed stranger. And there was no doubt that Rupert should go after him; the guy had talked about attacking others. If he orchestrated this, then what was he planning now? The stadium was still packed full of people. Were they in danger? But despite this Rupert just couldn't bring himself to follow the Yakuza.

"Cubone, I... I can't. You know I can't. I wasn't made for this stuff. I don't have the nerves for it. You know that."

Rupert looked crestfallen into the darkness where he knew Cubone stood. Cubone said nothing, but his silence spoke plenty to the trainer. Rupert knew what Cubone was thinking. He had promised that he was a new man. That this tournament had changed him. That from now on he would always face any challenge head on. If he backed away from that promise now, would his team ever trust him again? Should they?
Rupert sighed.

"... Do I have to?"

"Bone!"

With that Cubone returned to his pokeball and Rupert quietly set out after the tattooed stranger. He had never been so scared in his life. Maybe.

 

[JdaS]

Outside the arena, many people had already made it out, mainly people who had been in the hallways and recreational areas. One of these people was Jeremy Moore, who stood and looked around, contemplating what had happened.

Hm. I was just done talking to that poor excuse of a "breeder" when all of a sudden the city goes dark. That, coupled with these peculiar no-show Trainers... Could there be something afoot?
________________________________________________________________________________________________

Darius was the first Sleeping Sunkern patron to make it out the stadium, seeing as the closest exit was quite near the PokéCenter he was in when the lights went out. After a 15 minute trek through the dark city streets he'd arrived at the inn. Much to his surprise, the inn was fully lit. Had the power outage not affected it?

______________________________________________________________________________________________

Lee made his way down the tunnel, behind Duskull whose Will-o-Wisps were faintly illuminating a path. As he reached the end a familiar voice greeted him.

"Am I glad to run into you, lad!"

It was Ryan, a fellow tenant from the inn, with his ever loyal Mightyena in tow.

"Me and Mightyena were getting ready for our match when suddenly it got awfully dark in here. We were about to get out and back to the inn. Care to join forces? Mightyena doesn't mind the dark but can't really do the whole light show your Pokémon can, can you boy?"

Might? M-Might!

Ryan's loyal partner snaps back to attention from keeping an eye on Lee's Pokémon.
______________________________________________________________________________________________

The larger group of Sleeping Sunkern patrons: Daria, Matt, Remy, Tom and Caleb were busy hearding the remaining spectators out of the pitch-black arena.

Daria had sent Spiegel and Gemini to act as beacons for the nearest exits and, after an extremely loud call for everyone's attention, that out performed the venue's own PA system, she was all set to go

Caleb contributed with Raiden, his newly evolved Luxray and its uncanny ability to see through solid obstacles.

Matt didn't let the dark get to him, instead calling out Spike to act as a personal torch.

Remy let out an impressed whistle.

"Whew. You guys certainly ain't amateurs. Right then, guess I'll carry my weight too. Sneasel, come on out!"

Snee! Sneeeasel!

"Sneasels are nocturnal predators. Sneasel here is going to be on the lookout for any trouble."
AND some fallen valuables, too. Hehhehehh.

Tom, however, was slightly worried about his new aquaintance.

"Hey where'd Rupert go? Did anyone see him?"

Remy and Sneasel took a look around. The kid was not around.

"I remember him sayin' something about going to buy a drink or something? If that's the case then he's probably made his way out by now. If he hasn't we'll probably meet him on the way out."

And so they were off. The next 15 or so minutes were spent trudging along the crowded hallways of the arena. The darkness made way for the diverse lights and flames of peoples' Pokémon, brought out to light their way. After a few more minutes, the gang was outside. Freedom at last! No sign of Rupert.
______________________________________________________________________________________________

Rupert was tailing the tattoed man he'd bumped into earlier, albeit not completely out of his own volition. Nevertheless, he could not shake the feeling that this man was somehow connected to the blackout moments ago.

"...the two chuckleheads who attacked the kid? Good. Cut it in 10 minutes...

Outside the stadium, it wasn't hard for Rupert to spot his suspect. Just look for the man walking away calmly with his hand in his pockets. For a possible terrorist, this guy sure was conspicuous. Rupert tailed the man as carefully as he could, to an old warehouse at the Goldenrod docks. Fortunately, it appeared he'd gone unnoticed as he followed the "Yakuza" inside, hiding behind some crates to listen in on the conversation.

There were 5 men inside. All of them in black suits. Two of them, however, were tied back to back onto chairs.

"...beat some random kid, huh!?! And for what? Huh? For these ridiculous excuses for Pokémon?? You see what we had to go through just to cover up for your screw ups? The job was to happen tommorrow! What if they pull the plug on it, huh!?! How will you fix that? HUH!?!"

"P-p-p-please... A-a-a-aniki..."

*SMACK*

"You don't call me "Aniki" anymore you worthless sack of garbage! I don't tolerate hotheaded thugs who pick random fights when they're told to lay low."

"Eres-aniki! What should we do with these two?" Asked one of the men who wasn't tied to a chair and beaten to a pulp.

"*sigh* Teach 'em a damn lesson... Then dispose of them and send the Pokémon they stole to Stein. I need to inform Lady Ti..."

*CLANK CLUTTER*

"What the hell was that?"

Rupert, in his nervousness had knocked over a stray plank. He'd been made. He had to either make a break for it or stay and get caught.

 

[nuba km]

"Me and Mightyena were getting ready for our match when suddenly it got awfully dark in here. We were about to get out and back to the inn. Care to join forces? Mightyena doesn't mind the dark but can't really do the whole light show your Pokémon can, can you boy?"

"Sure I mean what else is there to do? wonder how long it will take for them to get the power back up, and wonder what they are going to be doing about the missed time" lee replied, while duskull decided to send a cold breeze down migthyena's neck using a weak ominous wind. Lee started to lead the way with duskull.

 

[CJ1145]

Daria gave a cool grin as they stepped out into the moonlight, throwing her shades back on and taking a deep breath. "FREEDOM!" she yelled, and everyone near her flinched on reflex in fear of another "PA announcement".

Stretching out her arms to give herself some space, she analyzed the situation. "Hey, guys..."

She bit her lip, contemplating the situation around the arena, all the while thinking in her head. There wasn't any particular surge in power that would've shorted out the stadium right then. And...

She looked at the buildings down the street. The rest of the street is out too. But shortages usually don't happen this late. Almost NEVER, actually. Not in Pewter anyway. No way this wasn't deliberate, but why attack the stadium?..

"I've gotta get to the bottom of this!" she yelled, forgetting that thoughts and words were different for just a moment. She didn't seem to care that her outburst garnered attention, and immediately plucked a Pokeball off of her belt and shoved it in Matt's face.

"Matt!" she exclaimed, with a remarkably salesman-like grin. "I need you to trade me, just for today! Your Pigeotto, for my Graveler!"

 

[Evrant-Knight]

Caleb sighed with relief as the group made their way out of the stadium. He still couldn't see any sign of either Lee or Rupert, deducing that they must still be inside. Looking over at the city streets, he noticed that they were also blacked out. It was then that the loud voice of Daria screamed out attracting attention. He turned to Raiden, and stroked his mane of fur, congratulating on a job well done, feeding him a purple Pokéblock afterwards.

"I've gotta get to the bottom of this!" She yelled, soon removing a Pokéball from her belt, and shoving it in Matt's face.

"Matt!" she exclaimed, with a remarkably salesman-like grin. "I need you to trade me, just for today! Your Pigeotto, for my Graveler!"

Caleb cleared his throat, before removing Pokéball that held his Staravia, Angelique.

"You know Daria, my Staravia could probably help as well. That way, we'd have two flying types perform aerial reconnaissance."

 

[Pappytech]

"I need you to trade me, just for today! Your Pigeotto, for my Graveler!"

"Oh, um... I don't know..."

As Daria proposed her deal, Matt fidgeted, instinctively clutching at Ventus' Pokeball. As crude as he might be, the Pidgeotto was still one of Matt's best friends; entrusting the Pokemon to a girl he'd only met yesterday was not a situation that particularly pleased him.

Then again, it wasn't like Daria was going to swipe Ventus and make her escape, cackling as she flew away. There really wasn't any reason not to say yes. But still...

"Hold on for a second, okay?"

There was a brilliant flash of light, and Ventus soon settled onto Matt's shoulder, beady eyes flickering around the chaotic scene. "Pidgerrrrrro?"

"Hey Ventus, got a question for ya. Daria thinks that there's something fishy going on with this blackout, and wants to go check it out, but she needs a flying Pokemon to get a good picture. Do you think you could help her out?"

The Pidgeotto, instead of answering, took a moment to study the energetic Kanto native. Long seconds passed as Ventus' keen eyes analyzed Daria, before it finally dipped his head in agreement. "Rrooo."

Sighing, Matt gave a small nod as well, being careful not to dislodge Spike from his tenuous perch. "Well, if he's okay with it, then I guess I am too. Alright, let's do it."